Specific laser applications such as laser designation, laser range-finding, laser illumination, and laser marking and pulsed illuminators for active imaging require separate laser devices, each optimized for the corresponding use. Each laser device typically comes with its own housing, electronics and power supply/batteries. Although a multi-wavelength, multipurpose laser could be constructed by integrating these laser devices into a single system, the use of many separate sets of housing, electronics and power supplies would result in a system that is complex, heavy and bulky. In addition, such integration approach would require using multiple telescopes, one for every laser in the system, or the combining of outputs of all lasers into a single beam, to be transmitted through a single telescope. Both of these methods would require careful bore-sighting of all of the beams relative to each other, and maintaining such alignment over a large military-spec temperature range and vibration and shock exposure. The need for such beam combiner and/or multiple telescopes would further add to the complexity, weight and size of the multi-wavelength laser system. These deficiencies would make a multi-wavelength laser system that is comprised of separate individual lasers too large and complex to be useful. This is particularly true when a laser system needs to be hand-held, rifle-mounted or be mounted in a small unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) and unmanned ground vehicles (GUVs).
U.S. Pat. No. 5,675,595 relates to a composite multiple wavelength laser material and multiple wavelength laser for use therewith; U.S. Pat. No. 4,494,235 relates to a multiple wavelength laser; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,331,649 relates to a multiple wavelength laser system. These patents do not teach generating multiple beams with different wavelengths, pulse energies, pulse repetition rates. Further, they are not known to teach control of the output energy and power of each laser independently.